It's been a day of highs and lows for American women at the Beijing Olympics. Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor defended their gold medal in women's beach volleyball. Though it was raining, the players didn't seem to mind, with Walsh saying, "The rain made it better. I don't know why, but it made it better. The ball is really wet and slimy, and you have to take care of the ball. But it's not my......

Better known for the pinkish Vitamin Water flavor based on it, fresh dragon fruit is currently available at Chinatown produce markets. Because dragon fruit (pitaya plant) pollination occurs only at night, when its huge white flowers bloom, fruit is harvested just a few times a year. Production is notoriously tricky, sometimes requiring a little human-dragon fruit “husbandry.” And while buying food that was jetted at least a few thousand miles to be sold out of......

Who better to dissect the hipster than a bartender at favorite hipster hangouts? NY Mag asks bartender at Enid's and The Annex, Lynnea Scalora, some questions about the regulars. Is there a difference between the LES hipster and the Greenpoint hipster? In Greenpoint, it’s relaxed hipsters. They’re cool but messy. Whereas in the LES everyone is cool and dolled up. At the Annex people are very concerned about their image, who they’re seen with, getting......

Meat Loaf and Broadway sort of seem like a match made in heaven, or perhaps hell would be more appropriate, as he is taking his Bat out of Hell albums and bringing them to life on the Great White Way. The one-night-only concert, aptly called "Bat Out of Hell on Broadway", will take place November 2 at New York’s Palace Theatre. And we have two tickets to give away! So if you want to check......

Attorney General candidates Jeanine Pirro and Andrew Cuomo delivered a crazy, mean-spirited exchange in their first debate. And if it weren't so sad that these are our candidates, it would be funny. It was a little funny when Pirro mocked Cuomo's record as a "non-practicing lawyer" (14 months in the Manhattan DA's office over 20 years ago) and his record as the secretary of HUD under President Clinton, saying, "Your running for attorney general......

Anyone who has participated in higher levels of organized sports knows that there's always some sort of hazing involved. From NFL rookies paying for the meals of veterans, to MLB rookies dressing up in drag. Well, Badjocks has some pictures of a local team - the Fordham Softball Team. The pictures, which aren't as racy as some of the others on the site, speak for themselves. Our personal favorite is the one pictured above,......

Shanghaiist probably knows a little more about China than the Chicago Sun-Times. Giving them the benefit of the doubt on that one. The city does to have a music scenei. Don't even front like they don't. They also have Dorrito bananas and white guys shopping for wives. What they don't have is any more tolerance for jaywalkers. Bostonist sees Boston and Somerville each whip out their art and face off. A plagarized novel is the......

Brad Steuernagel, Cassidy Henehan, Peter Kassnove, comedians, hosts, The $1 Room...

How good are the Nationals at home? Besides being the best home team in baseball, the last time they didn't win a home series was against the Phillies in late April. How good has Livan Hernandez been? No losses since April 19th. Both streaks ended last night as the Mets beat the Nationals 5-3. Of course, this doesn't mean the Mets are anything special, just that the Nationals and Livan Hernandez are pretty damn good.......

In a re-election year stumping opportunity, the Mayor visited Conan O'Brien's talk show last night and asked him to bring the Tonight Show back to NYC. And Gothamist says, "Please, do!" The AP says that Mayor Bling "jokingly tried to make a deal," offering to give O'Brien a park permit for the Late Night softball team if he stayed in NYC. Conan said, "It's not up to me, I work for the man. If......

The Giants haven�t won at Lambeau Field since 1971 when Fran Tarkenton, pictured above, was quarterback and Alex Webster was coaching on the sidelines. So they�ve got that going for them, which is nice. Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre is banged up with a bruise �the size of a softball� on his leg, but he�ll be making his record 212th straight start at quarterback. Favre will be doing his best to stop the Packers� two......

The United States softball team won their third Olympic gold medal in a row yesterday, defeating Australia 5-1. The Australian run was the first run the US team had given up all tournament long. In their nine games to gold, they had eight shutouts and scored 51 runs, a team ERA of 0.13 and a .343 team batting average. Insane numbers for the best softball team in the world. This was the first time in......

No matter how bad the Yankees pitching is, or will be, I take solace in the fact that we will NEVER have to run Pat Hentgen out on the mound. Last night was a perfect example of horrible pitching. Unfortunately, Javier Vazquez was once again only mediocre in his performance. On this night though it was good enough to beat the Blue Jays 10-3. Hentgen lasted only two and two-thirds innings, giving up eight earned......

The much scrutinized Yankee pitching staff came up big in this four game series with the Devil Rays. The four starting pitchers and the relievers combined to give up only 11 runs in the four game set. Lead by the inconsistent Jose Contreras on Thursday and finished by the triumphant return of Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez. Contreras pitched well in Thursday's 7-1 win (see our post on that game here). On Friday it was newly......

There is nothing quite like backing into a series with a team that beat you six times last year, but that's exactly what the Mets are about to do. Yesterday afternoon, the Mets took on the Reds and all was going smoothly until a Ken Griffey Jr. fly ball in the 7th inning. Jose Reyes had a two-run homer, his first since late August of last season, and the Mets had a 1 run lead.......

The Mayor and City Council agreed on the new NYC budget Monday night that is about $47 billion and includes the Mayor's $400 tax rebate for homeowners. Other notable inclusions: - Earned income tax credit for low-income families (something City Council wanted), which would mean $50 million total in tax breaks; - The $215 million in funding for "infant mortality programs, libraries, CUNY scholarships, childcare, summer youth jobs and other social services" (the Mayor had......

This weekend looks to be a rather boring for the New York region. The Mets and Yankees are both out of town playing teams in Florida. There is no hockey, no baketball, no nothing. George Vecsey pointed this travesty out yesterday and Gothamist couldn't agree more. When was the last time there were no local sports this weekend? What happened to seeing scores of Navy men and women in the stands of Shea or......

Dennis Crowley, Founder of Dodgeball.com...

Andy Horwitz, P.S.122...

President Bush wanted to freak out little kids from a softball team, so he dropped his dog Barney before boarding Air Force One. Barney did not suffer any injuries, but did have to be kissed by Bush. Barney's ABCs at the White House - and the Barney Cam!......